


Wild Salt Air

by tveckling



Category: Romeo And Juliet - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Amnesia, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Capulets are humans, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Escalus+Montagues are merpeople, Fantastic Racism, Fever, Fever Dreams, Kidnapping, M/M, Near Death, Objectification, Physical Abuse, Rape, Rape Aftermath, Recovery, Suffering, The rest of the gang will appear for real in later chapters, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-02
Updated: 2017-04-02
Packaged: 2018-10-14 03:51:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10528383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tveckling/pseuds/tveckling
Summary: With a burst of speed Mercutio broke the water’s surface and flew through the air. He had his face turned upwards towards the sky, and hungry he gazed at the clouds and stars so high above. For those few seconds it almost felt like he was flying, coming closer and closer, and soon he would be able to reach them.It only lasted until his head hit the water and he was submerged once more. The urge to repeat the experience was strong, but instead he simply swam happily with his face barely touching the surface. Idly he raised his fingers, just a little, and felt the air hit the webbing between them. He was almost feeling at ease, but the nagging voice at the back of his head wouldn't shut up.





	1. Worth of Water

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This chapter contains a somewhat graphic rape scene. If you want to skip it I have marked the beginning and ending of that particular part with ***. 
> 
> The tags will be updated with tags as they become relevant (and I remember to add them).

With a burst of speed Mercutio broke the water’s surface and flew through the air. He had his face turned upwards towards the sky, and hungry he gazed at the clouds and stars so high above. For those few seconds it almost felt like he was flying, coming closer and closer, and soon he would be able to reach them.

It only lasted until his head hit the water and he was submerged once more. The urge to repeat the experience was strong, but instead he simply swam happily with his face barely touching the surface. Idly he raised his fingers, just a little, and felt the air hit the webbing between them. He was almost feeling at ease, but the nagging voice at the back of his head wouldn't shut up.

The argument between Mercutio and his uncle earlier that day had been particularly vehement. Giovanni had apparently heard rumors from noisy servants that Mercutio liked going up to the surface, even going close to human ships, and he had not been pleased. For longer than Mercutio cared to remember he had been forced to listen to his uncle's rant about humans and the danger they posed, and the horrible consequences of coming across a ship hunting their people.

After the tragic incident when one young girl washed ashore a decade earlier the knowledge of the seafolk’s existence had become more than myth to humans, and it had resulted in humans hunting them. Apparently they were considered treasures up on the land and were worth much. While the seafolk had always been careful of being seen by humans it had become even more vital to stay hidden, and the Prince of the Mediterranean ocean had made it forbidden to get close to the surface.

It was one of the reasons Giovanni had been so angry when he found out about Mercutio’s adventures. If the Prince’s own nephew and heir didn’t obey his words, why should the rest of their people? Mercutio had quickly begun a tirade of his own, taking the opportunity to point out how he didn’t want to become the next Prince and how his brother was much more fit to the role than he. If their people wanted a respectable heir then they would need to search elsewhere.

Their argument-turned-screaming-match had only been interrupted by a soft head leaning against Mercutio’s back. Valentine—so much younger than Mercutio, and still so unsure of himself—didn’t like arguing, especially not between his brother and uncle. When he became aware of Valentine’s presence the fight left Mercutio and he bit back his sharp words with effort. Giovanni took his opportunity to once again ban Mercutio from going to the surface, promising grave consequences if he did. Instead of answering him back in tone, like he so badly wanted, Mercutio patted Valentine’s head and left the room.

It was only natural that he swam mindlessly and the fury inside of him gave him speed, making him quickly leave the palace and all the people behind. He hadn’t even noticed where exactly he was heading until he had spotted the stars, but he thought it was fitting as well. His uncle could rage all he wanted; Mercutio would never listen to such a ridiculous order. Humans were dangerous, yes, but the air wasn’t, so what was the reason to stay away? Besides, not all humans were dangerous. Once when he had been out stretching his tail Mercutio had happened upon a fishing boat. He had stopped a good while away, curious but not reckless, but when the fishermen spotted him all they did was waving before continuing with their work. Eventually his curiosity had grown too large and he called out to them, beginning a conversation that lasted until the men had to go back to land. Mercutio had helped with their nets, making sure they left with plenty of fish, and they had taught him a lot about humans in return. To date it had been one of the best afternoons he had experienced.

That experience might have colored his perception of humans, made him less scared, but that was a good thing in his opinion. If the seafolk could as well as tame sharks and explore the oceans, then why would they need to fear humans? More seafolk had been lost in the deep caves than to humans, after all. It was only his uncle who was paranoid and with his laws spread the fear amongst the people; that, if anything, annoyed Mercutio. Obeying orders without thinking made them no better than the jellyfishes just drifting around, pushed by the currents.

No matter what Giovanni said Mercutio wasn’t too careless around humans though. Like his uncle Mercutio had good reason to hate the land dwellers, and Giovanni’s insistence that Mercutio had forgotten what they had done made him angrier than anything else did. How could he ever forget the danger humans represented? He had been the one sent away to hide with Valentine, who had been too small to swim quickly; he had heard his parents die and seen the water get colored by their blood as their bodies were thrown back into the water. Discarded. He had held Valentine in his arms, shielding him from the sight as their parents slowly sank to the ocean floor, while he hadn’t allowed himself to look away.

He would never forget.

Lost in his thoughts Mercutio didn’t notice the ship until weak sounds reached him through the thin layer of water. He stopped immediately and surveyed his surroundings, finding that he had swum far longer than he had thought to. Instead of being in the middle of the ocean, far from any land and sailing route, he discovered that he had moved towards the northern lands. A couple more hours of swimming would bring him to a small island his parents had brought him to play on when he was a small child, before Valentine had been born. Before their people had been moved from legends to prey. It was also where their lives had been forcefully ended.

The source of the noises was just as quick to discover, and Mercutio tilted his head thoughtfully. The ship wasn’t that big, but still larger than any fishing boat he had happened upon. Was it a merchant ship, perhaps? They had a net out in the water, he spotted, and decided to move closer to examine them. The sky was dark and there were only a few lights in the ship as well as the moving light that told where the guard was; it would be alright as long as he avoided the lights. There was no way they would see him in the dark even if he was close to the surface, thanks to his dark coloring. He had always been happy his scales didn’t emit light in darkness, since it allowed him to do things like spying. True, he would still have done his best to go wherever he could, forbidden or not, but it made it less dangerous.

As he moved through the water—far below the surface that he wouldn’t be spotted even with the added help of a lamp—he observed about a dozen smaller fishes caught in the net, as well as a lone dolphin. The sight of the poor creature made him swim faster, and his heart ached at the sounds it made when it spotted him. He stroked it gently, trying to calm it down, while he tried to see where it had gotten caught. It didn’t take long to find that its tail fins had been tangled in the net, and even less time to unravel the mess. The dolphin waited, patiently and shivering, next to him. The moment it realized it was free it sang and swam around Mercutio in circles, making him grin wide, before it swam forward with a sudden jump.

Instead of continuing forward and disappearing into the darkness like Mercutio had expected, however, it turned and came back to circle him another time. Not until the dolphin turned and looked at him did Mercutio understand that it was trying to get him to come with it. He chuckled and held out his arms, hugging the smaller creature close when it swam back to him. Then, with a shake of his head, he pushed it away and pointed to the free waters. As it slowly swam away he kept watch, making sure it didn’t try to get him to come with it. He wasn’t done with the ship yet.

As he prepared to swim up to the ship desperate movements from the net caught his attention, and he looked at the fish still trapped. Normally he would have let them be, since humans needed to eat too, but he _had_ rescued the dolphin. It felt too unfair of him to simple leave the rest and continue on his way, so with a shrug he turned back to the net.

Freeing the rest of the small fish was quick work as well, and he couldn’t stop grinning when one brave little thing even swam up and stroked its body along his cheek as thanks before swimming away in a speed he almost envied. As soon as the net was free of any living creatures Mercutio turned his attention to the ship above him, and he made sure to slowly break the surface right next to the wooden boards of the ship. Even if he was curious he wasn’t needlessly reckless, despite what his uncle’s voice was screaming in the back of his head. If he had seen what Mercutio was up to he would have fainted.

The sounds Mercutio had heard was music, he discovered. Some instruments and a couple voices singing. They certainly didn’t sound anywhere as good as his own people, but there were people laughing and joking and encouraging the singers, so apparently they were good according to human tastes? Just another way in which humans were different from his own kind, Mercutio supposed. It sounded nice, and relaxing and fun. He was curious about what sort of instruments humans played, and he had heard about the way humans danced. Mother creator, he wanted to see.

With his heart beating loudly in his ears Mercutio slowly pulled himself up to one of the holes in the railing, wrapping his tail around the nearby ropes so he didn't have to use all his strength by simply keeping himself above water. The ship deck wasn't that large, and the men he had heard were less than two tail-lengths away, singing and drinking and laughing. He had never been so close to humans before, he realized, and it was hard to swallow around the thickness in his throat. Maybe his uncle was right, partly at least, and he shouldn't have come so close. But then, there was nothing dangerous looking about the men. None of them wore weapons, and they were all so carefree and happy. It couldn't hurt to stay a little while. They were all too busy to notice him anyway.

It didn't seem like the sailors were in any hurry to end their festivities as they continued on to song after song. Mercutio had trouble keeping his laughter down when one sailor impromptu decided to dance. At least he could guess it wasn't the usual way humans danced, since all of the others laughed at the sight. His nervousness had disappeared somewhere between the third and fourth song, and by the time they started on the fifth song Mercutio was simply nodding his head along to the music. In the corner of his eyes he could see that the moon had risen, and the feeling that he should return home was slowly growing stronger.

Sighing he put his forehead against the wood and closed his eyes. He really didn't want to return to another talking to—not to mention the looming threat of consequences—but Valentine was waiting for him, as was Benvolio and Romeo. They had plans to explore a sunken ship they found some days earlier, and if he didn't get enough sleep they would complain about his mood. As if Romeo wasn't worse whenever he had been rebuked, or Benvolio when he felt no one listened to him. Mercutio was the most pleasant one out of them, damn it, and they had no right to complain. If they did he would make sure to give back tenfold.

The music continued while he thought, and the men continued on as they had. There was nothing to indicate any danger, and Mercutio took it easy as he mulled over his options. A small jerk in the ropes his tail was twisted around made him open his eyes and turn to see what happened, and then everything happened faster than he could react.

Before he could let go of the ropes they tightened around his tail, to a painful degree, and he opened his mouth while reaching for the ropes—whether to scream or gnaw at them he wasn't sure. The rope that coiled around his neck and immediately tightened cut off his breath, though, and blind panic took over his mind. He trashed as good as he could, his hands clawing at the rope around his throat, trying his best to get loose and fall down into the water again. The only thing that happened was that the rope around his tail pulled him up, and then he could feel hands pulling at him, grabbing his tail and holding him down, then pushing down his arms against the wooden floor. The rope around his throat disappeared, and as he gasped for air he regained his ability to focus on other things than panicking.

"-gills, then why was the rope so effective? He doesn't breathe air, right?"

"Stupid. Don't you know that their gills close as soon as they come out from the water? They can breathe air as well as we can."

The men talking were the ones holding down his tail, and Mercutio made a violent jerk, hoping to throw them off. It almost worked, and he saw one of the men loose his grip of the slippery scales. There wasn't enough time for the success to settle in Mercutio's chest before a third person threw himself on top of his tail, effectively rendering it immobile.

Mercutio started trashing again with a sob, throwing his body around and trying to get loose, working with every muscle in his tail to move until he ached with the effort, pulling against the grips of those holding his arms. There were a total of five of them around him, big human men, and they were all concentrating on their task of holding him down. It was as if they didn't see him, even when his eyes happened to lock with one of theirs. The man he had almost managed to throw off had recovered and pushed down his caudal fin. With that he couldn't move any part of his tail, and even though he continued to struggle with all his might he could feel his strength weakening. His uncle's warnings rang through his head nonstop; he should have listened, he should have stayed away.

In a desperate move Mercutio pulled at his arm with power he didn't think he still had. The man wasn't expecting the abrupt pull and fell forward, although still holding on to Mercutio's arm with an iron grip. Mercutio had never been one for using his sharp teeth as weapons—there were actual weapons for that—but he didn't hesitate in opening his mouth and biting as hard as he could into the man's shoulder, hoping it would make him loose his grip.

It worked, and the man let go of him with a pained shout. Mercutio was only happy to let go of the man when he tried to pull away, and with his arm freed he was feeling a sense of success again. His next target was the man holding down his other arm, currently gaping at the wounded man falling down on the deck. He wasn't watching Mercutio, didn't see the fist coming towards his face.

Mercutio was too focused on his target rather than his surroundings, though, and didn't notice the sixth man until his boot hit Mercutio's back with enough force to knock all air out of his lungs. While Mercutio coughed wildly he was pushed down on his stomach instead and his arms pulled behind him. He discovered quickly enough that he had even less power in that position and as soon as he started struggling he was easily pushed down. He had lost.

"You're a feisty one. I will say I didn't expect this much trouble, but in the end it doesn't matter. Nico, go get that wound taken care of. Wouldn't want you to get an infection. Who knows where this creature has been." A hand gripped Mercutio's hair and roughly pulled his head up. The man crouched in front of him was better dressed than the others and far calmer, middle aged and with greying hair at his temples. It must be the captain of the ship, he assumed. Looking into his eyes made Mercutio shiver but he refused to look away. "This is the second time I've caught one of your kind, you know that? The other one didn't have the same colors as yours; her skin was yellow and green mixing together here and there. It was a pretty spectacle, but I would say your dark red will fetch a better price. You're also more attractive, and the people do want to have something pleasing to look at. I just know some rich noble or merchant will happily pay gold for you. Maybe you will even catch the eyes of some royal, who knows. Whoever ends up buying you, you will make me and my men rich."

"Get your filthy hands off of me, human." The blood raced furiously through his veins and Mercutio wanted to rip into the man in front of him. Talking so easily about selling him off, like he was a thing. He tried to avoid thinking about the other who had been caught, the girl, or he'd start imagining her fate, and then he would either lose his mind to the rage entirely or lose all fight left in him. There was no way he would allow the same fate to happen to him.

"You're not afraid to talk, that's even better." The captain smiled widely, but it only made Mercutio more ill at ease. "Nobody cares if you insult them or what you say, only that you do talk. Some might want a pet they can simply look at when their fancy strikes, but I know plenty who will want to pry out all your secrets. If you don't talk then that's hard."

Mercutio laughed harshly, ignoring the feeling of his nails biting into his palms. Oh, how he wanted to get the man's throat between his teeth. "Even if I did have secrets there's not one of your kind who would be able to get them out of me. I don't dance to any human's pipe. That includes you."

Mercutio's smile was more teeth than anything else and he stared unblinking at the captain as he focused. He imagined his tail splitting, the scales of his tail forming smooth skin, the color of his skin changing, the webbing between his fingers disappearing. The gasps from around him told him that the feeling of his body changing wasn't just in his mind. The men holding onto his tail released him with unsure murmurs, since there was no longer a tail to hold, just human legs. Satisfaction pooled in the pit of Mercutio's stomach as he watched surprise come into the man's eyes. The anger that then took control of his face was just as pleasant to watch, however.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that your kind can do these sorts of tricks. You already mimic humans in your natural, half fish state. This is just one step further." The hand holding Mercutio's head up tightened painfully. "I would advise you to stop playing around. Even if you do this I'm not going to let you go; I know your true nature, creature."

Mercutio pursed his lips before spitting at the man, hitting him at the corner of his mouth. The man dropped him with a sound of distaste, and Mercutio grinned as wide as he could. He barely had enough strength to hold up his head by his own will, but there was no way he was going to show that. "It seems you have gravely misunderstood something. The world began in the sea and everything comes from there, including you humans. You're just seafolk who forgot to go back into the water. Why would we ever want to imitate you? That's what octopuses do, not us. But hey, you do seem to have a lot in common with those slimy-"

The slap was hard enough to make Mercutio's teeth rattle, but before he had time to raise his head from the floor the fist was back in his hair and pulled him up to his knees, harshly enough to make a groan sneak past his clenched teeth. Mercutio cursed the sound, even low as it was, and forced his eyes open. Behind him the sailor shifted position to better hold on to his arms, and Mercutio spared a moment to curse him silently for not releasing his grip even one moment, before turning his attention back to the real danger standing in front of him. It wouldn't do not to keep his enemy in sight, even if the face that met him made his blood run cold. The captain's expression was blank, but there was fury in his eyes that made Mercutio wonder why he was still alive.

"Enough talk. Change back to your true form, now."

Mercutio licked the blood from his lip, which he had accidentally bitten into at the slap, and smiled sweetly. "No."

The captain used his other hand to grip Mercutio's chin, hard enough to make him wince, and leaned forward. "You don't understand. We don't deal in human slaves. If you stay in this shape you're not worth anything to us."

"Such a pity. Might I suggest you throw me overboard? There's a perfectly good ocean all around us, it's a good place to get rid of someone." His tone might have been airy, but behind the words there was worry. After holding himself up at the side of the ship, the struggling, and then his transformation Mercutio's strength was close to drained. He wasn't sure he would be able to shift back even if they threw him back into the water.

Not that he actually thought they would.

The hand around his face tightened. "I see you think you're a funny one. It's time to skip the jokes and face reality. As a mermaid you're worth more money than my own life's worth; do you honestly think I'll just let you go? It's always best to keep your hands off of the merchandise, but even a broken mermaid will sell for more than we will get if we trade normal merchandise for a year. You _will_ change back, whether it be by force or your own will. I don't care how much pain I will have to inflict on you or how long it will take. I'm a patient man."

Mercutio tilted his head and forced as much innocence into his voice as he could. "Actually, I'm not a mermaid. According to human naming customs I'm a merman."

He anticipated some sort of physical rebuttal, but the punch in his gut hit him harder than he expected and Mercutio doubled over with a pained wheeze. The pulling of his hair was growing tiresome, he thought as he was jerked back up to face the captain again. He only got a scowl and another slap when he said as much.

"You can play fearless and uncaring as much as you want, but sooner or later you will break, and I will have fun doing it."

Mercutio glared up at the captain and bit out, carefully enunciating each word, "Fuck you."

For a second the captain looked at him with narrowed eyes, then the corners of his mouth lifted into a smile that sent ice down Mercutio's spine. "That might not be such a bad idea. All of you!" The man raised his voice loud enough to be heard by all those on deck. "We're leaving this area now, it's too risky to stay. Camillo, you set the course and make sure we stay out of dangerous water. The speed isn't important, the importance is to keep moving. Federico," he lowered his voice and turned to look at the man behind Mercutio, "tie him up and take him to my cabin."

"Yessir!"

Mercutio wasn't really surprised when he was pushed down on the deck again as soon as the captain turned around or when his furious curses went ignored. One of the men who hadn't immediately rushed away must have handed Federico one of the ropes used for pulling Mercutio on board because it took only seconds before he felt the rough material against his wrists. It was quick work, with Mercutio's weak struggling not seeming to be noticeable, and too soon Mercutio felt the rope tighten. When the hands disappeared—Federico must have stood up—Mercutio found that there was no leeway in the way his hands were bound.

There wasn't much he could do when he was hauled up to his feet, except for letting them work—it would also make it easier for him to avoid thinking about what the captain was planning on doing to him. When Federico took a step forward, holding Mercutio's arm tightly and clearly expecting him to follow along, Mercutio let his legs buckle and bit his teeth at the hard impact as he was ripped out of Federico's grip by the force. It was only slight pretense; he really had no energy left, and it had been hard enough to stand up straight. He had no plans of making it easy for anyone to do what they wanted with him.

"Goddammit! You useless fish!"

Mercutio didn't bother covering his smile, which stayed even as his arm was pulled at so hard it felt like it would break. He tried to be as uncooperative as he could, and went as lax as his body allowed. If deadweight was hard to move in the water it had to be much harder out of it.

It worked, as he thought it would, but only until Federico told someone to help him and Mercutio felt another person grab his other arm. Together the two men pulled him up to his feet and half pushed him, half dragged him over the deck. Federico was muttering under his breath, but Mercutio didn't spare a moment's attention to trying to listen to him or rile him up more; he was focusing on the door the two humans were headed towards. The closer they came the harder his heart beat. Thoughts ran frantically through his head, but there was nothing that could help him out of the situation. He was too weak to stand on his own, he was tied up and surrounded by humans who only wanted him harm, and he had been promised pain. All he had left was his wit, which didn't seem appreciated by the humans. They had that in common with his uncle, he thought hysterically and tried to pretend the door wasn't being opened. Too bad the humans wanted to sell every last one of his kind, or they would have gotten along splendidly.

"Here he is, captain. Where do you want him?"

"Throw him on the bed, then you can leave. And spread this: I will not be disturbed, unless it's an actual question of life or death." The captain remained standing and watched as his orders were obeyed, then calmly turned away from Mercutio to remove his coat.

Mercutio gritted his teeth and tried to move to a sitting position, which he hoped would make him feel less helpless. Tried, being the important word, as he couldn't muster the strength to do more than move to lie at his side so he could at least see what was going on. It was infuriating that he was thought of as so weak that the captain could easily turn his back on him, but to his further frustration he couldn't do anything to prove the opposite. He truly was that weak.

The room he had ended up in was small, the height barely tall enough to allow for a grown man to stand straight. After putting in a bed, a chair and a desk, and a big trunk, there wasn't much space left. It was less than half the space of Mercutio’s own room, but he supposed that wasn’t strange, considering there was less space overall on a ship. It wouldn’t do for someone used to higher standards, like his uncle, that was for sure. Mercutio could almost picture Giovanni looking around the room in distaste, much the same way he had looked when he had seen the aftermath of Mercutio, Benvolio, and Romeo’s squid-war in the middle of the market.

"What are you smiling about?"

A hand grabbed Mercutio’s chin and pulled his face up until his neck hurt. Mercutio stubbornly kept his smile as he stared back, pretending it didn’t ache. "I was studying this lovely room. I wasn't entirely sure what I thought I would see when I was brought here, but it certainly met every one of my expectations. It’s truly befitting of someone like you."

The captain pursed his lips and moved his hand lower, settling it around Mercutio's neck while he pushed Mercutio to his back with the other hand. Mercutio tensed as he realized what was going to happen, but with his hands tied behind his back and the heavy hand pushing him down he could only shut his eyes and grit his teeth when the hand around his throat began squeezing. He tried to hold on to his composure as long as he could, but in his current shape he needed air to breathe and soon panic flooded his mind. Mindlessly he buckled and writhed, straining against the rope that tied his hands together, but the pressure around his throat didn't change. His eyes had opened on their own and he stared up at the dark ceiling with tears slowly running down his temples; his mouth was open, trying in desperation to suck air into his lungs.

There was a pressure building up inside his head, and he couldn't think, couldn't move, couldn't see, and would his family ever find out what happened to him or would they just assume he left one day? What would Giovanni say? How would Valentine handle it, losing his parents and then his brother? Benvolio. Romeo. They would explore that ship the next day, what would they think when he never showed up? He hoped they wouldn't believe he had willingly left them behind, he would never leave them behind, ever. Would Valentine know he loved him? He had tried to be a good big brother but he wasn't good with his emotions, even when it came to his precious little brother. Valentine would be hurt and left alone; Mercutio could only pray to the Mother Creator, said to dwell in the deepest parts of the ocean and watch over them all, to let his brother's grief be short. Valentine...

The darkness moved across his field of vision when he was released abruptly. All of sudden he was able to breathe, and he curled up on his side as he coughed and wheezed. At the back of his mind he felt hands touching him, stroking his chest and backside. The haze of panic and relief was still foremost in his mind and he focused only on catching his breath, breathing in and out, in and out.

"If you keep testing my patience like that I will make sure you can't talk," the captain murmured into his ear.

Mercutio shuddered, nausea spreading throughout his body. He blinked several times to get rid of the tears which had unwillingly come into his eyes during his coughing fit, and tried talking. It hurt to speak and his voice was infuriatingly hoarse and weak, but he stubbornly forced out word after word. "Next time, why don't you tell me you are sensitive about your room. If it's not to your liking I'm sure we can figure out a way to make it more likeab-"

For his troubles he received a hard punch to his back that made him curl over even more with a groan. The bed shifted as the captain knelt over him, pulling his head back and leaning close to his face. "This is my last warning—and I'm only being this lenient because I have plans for you, but if you keep talking I will gag you."

Mercutio tried to grin, but he could feel how his try ended up in a grimace instead. His heart was beating hard, but he had plenty of practice of ignoring his own feelings. The part of his mind that screamed at him to stop baiting the human was something he was quickly growing used to also ignoring. "I thought you were going to make me turn into a merman—sorry, mermaid—no matter what. There was no talk of leniency before."

He couldn't see the captain's face, which he was grateful for, but the huff of amusement against his cheek sent another shudder through his body. The hand that wasn't pulling his head back moved lower, over his chest and stomach, and groped him between his legs. Mercutio scrunched his eyes shut and forced back the impulse to whimper, and idly he felt warmth run down his palms. At the same time as he realized it was blood he noticed the ache, caused by his own nails biting into his flesh. It was a much more welcome sensation to focus on, so he pressed harder and felt the pain increase.

It didn't stop him from hearing the voice that talked into his ear, though, or the way the hand stroked him.

"I know you're not a human, you're just some half-fish creature, but the way you look now... it's so easy to pretend otherwise. You look human, you sound human, and I bet you'll feel just like a human when I fuck you. But I know you're not human, so I'm not going to go easy on you. You're just a thing, a creature to be sold, and I'm going to teach you the repercussions of pretending to be a human."

As he was pushed to his stomach Mercutio's heart was hammering in his chest. His hands were shaking as the human pulled back—he could hear the sound of clothes being removed—and no matter what he couldn't will them to stop. The moment he was free he tried to turn around, maybe push himself towards the wall and kick at anyone coming close, but he could only do some weak wiggling. His legs were so weak, and it was near impossible to move them. He took a deep breath and blinked away tears, caused by the overwhelming and infuriating feeling of being so helpless, and kept on trying.

A chuckle from the end of the bed told him his tries had been noticed, and disregarded. The mattress dipped again as the captain climbed onto the bed, and Mercutio swallowed a sob when he felt hands on his thighs, rough and unyielding. He had heard about the cruelties humans did to one another, and stories about how men raped women was numerous. While he hadn't heard about a human man raping another man, Mercutio had always been certain it happened; it would be strange to use such a cruelty against some but not others. Now he would have proof it happened, and how it happened, but as he pressed his face into the mattress he wished deeply he had never gotten to find out.

In spite of how he used all his remaining strength to press his legs together they were quickly pulled apart, and he felt a body settle between his thighs. He tried to kick but the body was pressed against him too tight for him to be able to do anything. There was something moving against his ass, and he tried desperately to focus on the ache of his palms again. It wasn't enough, not painful enough, so he tightened his fists again, again and again. Still he could feel the heavy warmth moving against him, and the body leaning over him.

"You still have the option of changing back. If you turn back into a mermaid you will be handled gently, and no one will touch you or do anything to harm you," the captain said, almost kindly.

Mercutio laughed, only a bit of hysteria creeping in. His voice was thankfully not as shaky as the rest of his body, he discovered. "You should just kill me and be done with it. I'm never going to change back, no matter what you do."

"Very well, we'll do it your way. I'm not going to pretend I won't enjoy it."

 

***

Mercutio gritted his teeth and tried to breathe as he felt hands on his hips, pulling him into a kneeling position. He could handle it, whatever would happen next; he had experienced pain before, in multiple ways. Sharks, giant octopuses, jellyfish, other seafolk—he had fought them all, some more than others, and he had a few scars to show for it. There were more, invincible scars that only existed in his memory, but they were even more colorful. He could handle a human.

There was something pushing against his opening, and then with a grunt from the man above him, it pressed in. It felt like he was being torn open, and blood-red pain shot through his body as the captain pushed in again, and again, then pulled out and slammed in, repeating the process over and over. Mercutio screamed.

Time lost its meaning after that. As far as Mercutio was concerned it could have been minutes or it could have been hours, and the pain was too overwhelming for him to focus on figuring out how much time had passed. The man above him kept a steady rhythm, and there wasn't as much as a moment's relief from the agony. After a while Mercutio's voice had given out and he could only manage hoarse whimpers from time to time. It seemed that the captain enjoyed those sounds, as he thrusted especially hard after each one, but even as Mercutio tried to held the sounds back he couldn't. The reactions of his body was entirely beyond his control, and he could only close his eyes and wait for it to end.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the captain emptied into Mercutio with a grunt—the wet warmth spreading inside of him only made him feel more nauseous—and pulled out, soon after releasing Mercutio and leaving the bed. With the hands holding him disappearing Mercutio fell bonelessly down on the bed, quickly curling up as good he could, ignoring the way the position increased the ache in his backside. It was hard to open his eyes, but after a great deal of effort he managed, then looked down. The wetness he had felt between his legs, having dripped down on the bed during the ordeal, was blood. He wasn't exactly surprised at the sight, but still had to bite back bile at the visual evidence of the violation that had occurred.

***

 

Stubbornly Mercutio kept his eyes downward as the captain returned to stand next to the bed, having dressed. He didn't want to look up at the man, the very thought of looking him in the face made him want to throw up, but the hand gripping his face didn't allow him a choice. As they faced each other the captain hummed and stroked his hand over Mercutio's face, wiping away half-dried tears.

"I have changed my mind. Even in this shape you do have some worth, of a personal nature. Keeping you here would mean I don't have to pay for a whore again, and besides, you felt better than most of them. I'm sure your mouth is quite pleasurable as well..." He stroked a thumb over Mercutio's lower lip, huffing lightly when Mercutio bit after him. The slap was almost thoughtless, more of a reaction than a conscious action. "I'll just have to make sure you don't get it into your head to try anything," he muttered.

"May you end up in the deepest pits," Mercutio growled, his voice so weak the words were barely audible even to his own ears.

"I take it that would be the same as our hell?" the captain asked amused. He leaned close to Mercutio with a smile, still holding tight to his face. "There is always the choice to change back to your true form, any time you want."

"I'd rather die." His body wouldn't stop shaking though.

"But you won't. There'll only be pain for you if you remain like this." The captain straightened and smiled down at Mercutio. "I'll get someone to clean this all up. While I'm gone I advice you to think about what I said."

Mercutio stared silently as the captain exited the room, then, with a deep sigh, passed out.


	2. Slipping Through Fingers

The following days brought just as much pain as the first one, if not more. He was left alone for hours at a time, tightly tied up each time as if he had strength to even attempt an escape, and whenever the captain returned he brought with him the pain he had promised. After the fourth day he stopped playing at leniency, and after a week he stopped trying to convince Mercutio to shift back at all. He enjoyed the situation well enough as it was, he said as Mercutio tried to suck in as much air as possible into his lungs before the hand around his throat tightened again.

To escape his situation Mercutio found himself drifting away in his mind, remembering adventures he'd had or precious moments with his brother. The memory of his uncle's first and so far last attempt to get him involved in the politics of running a kingdom was enough to bring a smile to his lips, no matter how short-lived. He wondered, as he watched the too-bright sun through the windows, what they were all doing. His uncle had to have sent out people to look for him; he knew he was considered an annoyance and it was far from unusual for the two of them to get into fights, but he knew he was loved. The searching parties must have come back, even if they had been sent far away. Had Giovanni sent them out again, to places further away, hoping that it was only a matter of distance before Mercutio would be found? How long would it take, how many fruitless days would pass, how many men wounded after going where they were not supposed to, before he was forced to give up and announce Mercutio's death?

He would be okay, Mercutio knew that. He would grieve just as he had Mercutio's parents, and then he would turn back to his duties. There was always something to do, people to help, disputes to settle, territories to protect; he would find relief and comfort from his people. Mercutio had discovered that after his parents' deaths.

Benvolio, Romeo. The two cousins had been his friends for so many years, and he would have done anything to hear their voices complain about the mess he had gotten them into. He would happily list all the trouble that he most certainly had had no part in bringing about, and the three of them would get into a friendly ribbing match. It wouldn't take long before one of them had come up with a plan to escape, though, because together there was nothing that could stop them. They had learned that by experience. There were no others he trusted more to guard his back, and the absence of them made his heart clench painfully. With the three of them together he felt invincible, but without them he found himself lost. Asking for help.

They had each other, though. No matter what happened to him, whether he came back or became a memory and warning to avoid humans, they would be fine. When Benvolio's mother had died from a cave-in, a few years before Mercutio got to know either of them, he was taken in by his aunt and uncle, Romeo's parents. The two of them had lived as brothers since then, and they would always have a bond unlike the ones Mercutio shared with them. They could comfort each other and go on forbidden adventures in his honor, surely. They had talked enough about what they would do if one or both of the others died; Mercutio was sure they would honor his wishes and paint the entire castle in octopus ink. After a while he hoped that they would only think of him with smiles.

What—or rather, who—worried him was Valentine. It wasn't long until he would turn fourteen, but he was the most cautious and timid boy Mercutio had ever met. Residue from the trauma of their parents' deaths, the adults had all agreed while Mercutio eavesdropped, and it made Valentine cling to any familiar person, his older brother especially. While he had gotten better he got nervous if Mercutio went away for too many hours, and he still hadn't managed to fall asleep without Mercutio by his side. How in the world was he doing, after being left alone—being left behind, a venomous voice at the back of his mind whispered—for so long?

The thought was like a rock in Mercutio's stomach, weighing him down and aching unlike any of his physical pains. The tears came so easy whenever he thought of his brother, forced to endure another loss while he still grieved after the last one. He had broken down more than once, in the safety of the empty cabin room, and begged for his brother's forgiveness until his voice had given out. The words couldn't possibly reach Valentine's ears, but he couldn't hold them in.

But now he was almost at peace, his mind floating like the jellyfishes he had always liked messing with. The ache in his body after the morning's session had turned into background sensations—too much or too little of it for his mind to take notice of, he didn't know. He had cried again, whispered to Valentine to forgive him, to Giovanni that he was right, he was _right_ , and now he was completely worn out. It almost felt like he had no body, as though he had left it behind and was simply drifting around as time passed. The bird outside the windows held all his attention, and he thought he could almost feel the wind if he focused, could feel the freedom of flying if he focused just a little more, a little more.

So far away was his thoughts that he didn't notice when the door opened. The voice didn't register with him, even as the tone grew angrier. Not until the bed dipped and he felt someone touch him did his mind return to his body, with such a shock that his head hurt. His recoil from the touch was reflexive by now, rather than actually pained.

"What could you possibly have been thinking so deeply about, hm, pet? I wouldn't have thought your kind could sink into troubled minds as easily as we do. But then, maybe that's not it. Do you even have a mind to think with?"

Mercutio looked at Ramera, the accursed man who kept on torturing him, all with good cheer, but for once only felt exhaustion. Still he tried to summon some small amount of bite to his tongue as he answered in a hoarse whisper, "I shouldn't be surprised that's something you spend your time wondering about, considering your own state of mind."

The human's face twitched, and while normally Mercutio would have taken his small victory with a defiant grin now he only looked up at the ceiling. Pain flared up, just for a second before subsiding into being barely noticeable, and Mercutio focused again, looking at his arm where Ramera had grabbed one of the larger bruises. It was surely to provoke a reaction of some sorts, but Mercutio found himself still separated enough from his body that he barely felt it. While he couldn't enjoy the disappointment on the captain's face at the moment, he was sure to memorize it for later, when he was fully back in his body.

"You think you're trying to trick me, aren't you? If you stay unresponsive I will leave you alone?"

It was an idea Mercutio hadn't honestly thought of before then, and for a quick moment he allowed himself hope that maybe, maybe it would work? Then reality came back to him and he almost laughed; there was no way Ramera would stop, whatever reaction his captive showed, and only a truly naive mind would think so. The muttered curses and rustling of clothes that followed told him as much, and as he was harshly turned on his stomach Mercutio stared out through the windows, actually glad for the numbness he felt. There were several birds out there now, he noticed idly, flying in some sort of formation. Where could they be going? Were they following the ship, perhaps? If they still threw out the fishing net it would certainly be an opportunity for the birds to snatch a quick dinner, he guessed. It was a good matter to direct his focus towards, and when Ramera came to a finish he barely even felt it.

It wasn't until he was turned around again, onto his back, and saw that his tormentor was truly done that Mercutio realized he hadn't been deprived of air that session. The stray thought demanded further examination, and he wondered if he had been spared that particular agony because Ramera hadn't felt the need to shut him up. Would he stop strangling him if Mercutio stopped talking back at him? It was a chance, a very possible reality. Too bad it was the one thing Mercutio would not allow himself to do. His voice and his words were the only defense he had left, and he would never willingly surrender them.

"Have you been hit in the head, perhaps? You're never this submitting or quiet." Too bad there was someone else who refused to stay quiet as well.

Gritting his teeth Mercutio smiled sweetly. "I am merely basking in how much I appreciate your attention." A glance downwards showed that, yes, he was utterly flaccid. Not once had he even begun to harden during the sessions, even after his body had gotten used to the intrusion and stopped bleeding, and the very thought of it, of becoming as lost to a physical sensation as Ramera did, filled him with distaste. It was just as well that Ramera had never shown a hint of interest in bringing him pleasure.

A raised eyebrow met him when he looked up again, and a familiar sense of having gone too far filled him. "So you're saying that you want me to... focus my attention on you more?"

Mercutio watched with growing dread the hand that closed around him, and had he not been as numb he would surely have been overtaken with nausea. "I would honestly be surprised if you managed to focus even a second more of your attention on me," he said, slowly, clearly, without faltering, while his mind screamed at him to stop.

Their eyes locked, a silent challenge taking place as Ramera slowly began moving his hand. Mercutio could have wept in gratitude, because all he felt was the distant churning of his stomach, and he managed to keep the stare without any disgraceful reactions. Behind his back his immobile hands shook, just a little.

Then, while blowing air harshly through his nose, Ramera let go of him and sneered. "No, I don't think I will spend any more time on you that you might enjoy. Enough is enough, don't want you to get too comfortable, pet."

"And it was beginning to go so well," Mercutio drawled, barely keeping his relief at bay. Without the touch on his skin he felt like he could breathe clearly again. His attempt to look bored, unaffected, was too well done, however, he felt with a shiver as white-hot rage shone in the human's eyes.

"You dare!" With a snarl Ramera reached down and grabbed Mercutio's arm, pulling him to his feet with strength and ferocity that almost dislocated his shoulder. Mindless of the way Mercutio stumbled and nearly fell Ramera dragged him over to the desk, where he let go of him and started looking over the surface as though searching for something. Mercutio crumbled to the floor in a heap, his weak and unsteady legs unable to hold him up.

Fear shot through him when he saw the dagger that appeared in Ramera's hand, and he tried to scoot backwards, away from the furious man with a blade who had no qualms about hurting him. Had he finally gone too far? He had heard about people who had their tongues cut out, for reasons such as _angering the person with a knife_ , and his heart hammered in his chest. His hands were tied behind his back and his legs were too weak to carry him, but he tried to defend himself, throwing himself to his side and kicking out blindly. He couldn't lose his speech, he couldn't, he couldn't, he couldn't! It was the last part of him that was entirely his, that no person had ever managed to touch, and if he lost his words he would lose what made him him. He would have nothing left, nothing to keep him sane in his anguished existence.

It was no trouble for Ramera, strong and rested and unharmed, to grab his leg and hold it still. Mercutio swallowed a sob, keeping his mouth firmly shut, and trashed, tried to kick his leg free, twisted his body as best he could, tried kicking with his other foot. Nothing worked. He saw the rage filled eyes, saw as they looked him over, and then the knife descended, quickly and mercilessly.

A scream tore it's way out of Mercutio's throat, but he still had a tongue. The knife was stabbed into his leg, halfway up his thigh, and the pain was all he could feel. There was no numbness any longer, he was feeling everything in full force, everything that was happening and everything that had happened, and it was almost more than he could take, but he could handle it.

He was proven wrong about that seconds later, when the knife pulled downwards, and _pain_ overtook him.

Mercutio must have blacked out, because when he came to again the knife was gone and a man he couldn't recognize was bent over his leg, muttering to himself and fiddling with something in the bag besides him. Ramera was nowhere to be seen, and Mercutio still had his tongue. Anything else he could deal with, he thought with relief and sank back into blessed darkness.

When he at last struggled back to the waking world for more than a few moments, highly unwillingly, he was lying in the bed again. At least his hands had been tied up in the front, which was a small mercy and allowed him to move more than he usually could. As he shifted a sharp jolt of pain shot through him, and he clutched his leg with a groan. It sent waves of pain throughout his body, but he pushed enough of it out of his mind until he could focus on breathing again.

The wound must have been taken care of, he discovered. His thigh was bandaged, although he could spot a tint of red in the material. The darkness in the room told him that he had been unconscious for several hours though, so at least the work had been done well enough to keep him from bleeding out. All was well then; that was the only injury he had received.

"You're awake, are you, pet?"

Immediately Mercutio stiffened and stared straight ahead, trying to calm down his racing heart. He hadn't seen Ramera in the room when he looked around quickly, but it was dark and he had been distracted. Besides, as he had come to realize, humans didn't see as clearly as seafolk did. It wasn't strange for him not to notice the man now rising from the desk, even if that man was the cause of the terror that gripped his limbs.

"Even if you're quiet I know. I heard you, before. I know you're awake." The bed dipped by sudden weight next to him, but Mercutio kept on staring in the direction of his feet. He wasn't sure he could have moved his head if he'd tried, it seemed like his whole body was frozen in fear, despite the shamed roaring of his mind. It didn't seem the human wanted him to look at him or even talk, however, as he continued speaking without trying to demand an answer. "I want you to know- I want you to listen very carefully and remember this. I still have plans to sell you, tomorrow or one day in the distant future, okay? That means that I will do my utmost best not to permanently harm you in any noticeable way. I won't break your arms, I won't rip out your tongue, I won't give you more scars on your chest. I definitely won't scar your face.

You seem to think that I won't punish you, though. You keep talking back to me as if you have the right. I've told you before; you're just a creature, a half-fish pretending to be a man. You don't have any rights. The next time you anger me I will put the knife in your other leg, and then back to the left again. Maybe I'll remove toes. It has no meaning to me if you have scarred legs or missing toes, and when you go back to your taily self you won't have any legs, will you? So it won't matter then either."

His breathing seemed so loud. Had it always been so loud? It seemed to rumble in his ears, drowning out most other sounds. He tried to calm it down, make it quieter, or else his weakness would be discovered. He couldn't, couldn't, let Ramera know how affected he was. Couldn't let him win. But why wouldn't the damn breath quiet down? He had to focus.

"Am I making myself clear?"

Now he was demanding.

Tongue thick in his throat Mercutio answered numbly, "Yes." He would have said more, he told himself, would have fought and bit and defied if he had only been able to concentrate on finding words. But the breathing was so loud in his ears, and the waves from his leg kept crashing against the barriers of his mind where he had pushed it, and he kept feeling tremors through his body, and he was so very tired.

"Good pet."

Mercutio slowly closed his eyes as the weight rose from the bed disappeared. At least he could gather his thoughts and maybe fall back into the darkness before the human returned to sleep. At least there was that, and now his breath didn't seem quite as loud. The taste in his mouth was sour, however, and he kept having to blink away tears. If only he could calm his racing thoughts and fall asleep, everything would be clearer when he woke up again.

Idly he wondered if the birds he had seen earlier was still outside the ship, then scoffed inwardly. Of course they weren't, they would surely have left hours earlier, when he was lying unconscious on the floor or screaming like any halfwitted weakling. They had wings, after all, and could go anywhere they wished. He had dreamed about having wings, before, and flying up into the air.

The thought was no sooner running through his mind before it was squashed with every bit of concentration he could spare. That dream of flying, of truly being free, was what had brought him to the surface in the first place. To the ship, to the humans, to captivity and agony. It had lead to no good, and he swore to himself, as another wave of pain crashed against his mind and he gritted his teeth, that he would never again allow himself such childish thinking.


	3. Treading Water

It was so warm. He had never felt such heat before, even during the summers where he had drifted up to the surface and felt the sun heat the water, and it seemed that no matter what he did he couldn't escape it. It had gradually come upon him during the last few days, and somehow made his situation even worse than it had already been. With it the heat had brought exhaustion, in a different way than before. It seemed he only slept now, and he had only managed to stay awake a few minutes at a time for the last days—at least he thought it had been multiple days. He could dimly remember meeting brightness as well as darkness a few times when he woke, which he tried to do as little as possible. It seemed the warmth and tiredness weren't the only things he had been afflicted with; his thoughts felt as though they were tangled in seaweed, so hard to grab onto, and every time he tried to focus his head ached and disrupted whatever efforts he had gathered.

All in all it was really a relief to sink back into sleep as much as he did, not only escaping his own body but also the attention of others.

He had noticed the last few times that he woke up—confused and unaware of his location, at least until his head cleared—that his body had felt curiously untouched. Perhaps Ramera had decided that whatever ailment had come upon Mercutio was something he wanted to avoid, and therefore kept his distance. There weren't many other reasons Mercutio could think of, and he felt perfectly satisfied with that conclusion. True, he couldn't do anything but lie mindless and wait to pass out again when he was awake, but at least he only spent a small amount of time in that state. Compared to earlier his current situation was far more preferable.

The only problem then was when he was awake, he thought with a sight as he shifted in the bed, trying to find some spot that might cool his boiling body. The stab of pain from his leg only added to the relentlessly drumming in his head, and he wondered if he had enough strength to bash his head against the wall until he passed out.

Valentine snickered next to him, and Mercutio pouted as hard as he could.

"You always get yourself in so much trouble," Valentine said, his voice sounding as it came from far away, and poked a maroon finger at him. Mercutio tried to raise his hand to wave away the offending limb, but it felt so much heavier than usual, and he couldn't lift it more above his body before it fell down hard on the mattress again.

"Wow, you're really weak, aren't you," Valentine noted with a thoughtful hum. Mercutio narrowed his eyes further, realizing his mistake when everything went black and quickly opening them again. His brother only grinned wildly, the glint in his eyes so familiar. "Like after that time with the giant octopus, remember that? Bedridden for two weeks before you could swim around again. Actually, I almost think you're in worse shape now. Means you can't defend yourself, big brother, and you're all mine. You're now entirely at my mercy, and you know what that means, don't you?"

Mercutio found himself smiling and chuckling as his brother raised his hands and waved his fingers. "Oh no, please, have mercy," he whispered, shaking his head and trying to pretend it didn't make his vision lose all focus and turn blurry. It became almost normal after he remained still and blinked a few times, anyway.

"Never!"

With a squeal of laughter Valentine launched himself at Mercutio, but a voice made Mercutio's head swivel around. "Were you just laughing? Who are you talking to?"

Mercutio blinked, trying desperately to clear his head, and realized the space next to him was empty. There was no Valentine trying to play with him, he wasn't back in his room in the palace where his brother and uncle was, where his friends were only waiting until they could sneak in and get him and themselves in trouble. He was in the ship, with only Ramera, sitting at his desk and looking at him, as company. He was still captive, still alone.

The realization tightened his throat painfully and he closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down and stop the pounding in his head. "No one," he muttered. It hadn't been real, only a waking dream to escape his reality. Nothing more.

"Hm," Ramera said, and Mercutio didn't need to look at him to know that he wasn't satisfied with the answer he'd been given. When the human sighed and rose from his seat Mercutio tensed, expecting him to walk over to the bed, but instead he turned his steps away. When he opened his eyes Mercutio saw that the human captain was heading towards the cabin door instead, opening it with annoyance clear in his posture.

Turned out the pounding hadn't only been in his head.

The crew member gesticulated wildly and said something that escaped Mercutio, but it had apparently been important as Ramera quickly disappeared out of the room with him. Well enough, there was never a time where Mercutio wouldn't enjoy Ramera leaving his company, he thought with a sigh.

Everything was still and calm for a moment, then Mercutio felt his face crumple up. He tried to control himself, he did his best, but the hallucination of Valentine had only reminded him of how bitterly he missed his brother's company. How guilty he felt for leaving him alone. There was no need to worry about the dizziness, because his eyes had closed on their own as he cried, but the force inside his head seemed to expand the more he cried, and he was soon finding himself out of breath.

The lack of breath did much to end his weeping, and he could finally focus on putting himself together again. The wetness on his face used to be a comfort, but now he only found it an annoyance, a sign of weakness that he couldn't afford to show, and he raised his hand to wipe his face dry again. This time he knew why it was so tough to raise his hand, he thought with a blurry glare at the rope tying his wrists together, but he couldn't believe he had been so far into the hallucination that he had actually forgotten that. He had never been so lost in his mind before, not even at his most painful. What _was_ the infuriating ailment that had befallen him?

It didn't take long after he had calmed down before he felt his eyes grow heavier and he started drifting off. He didn't know how long he'd been dozing before a loud shout disturbed his rest. Annoyance flooded his head, along with the ache from all over his body that he had sadly begun growing used to, and he cursed the loud sailor in his mind for robbing him of the peaceful darkness.

But shortly thereafter there were more shouts, and Mercutio realized that something was going on. There had never been such shouting before and not with such alarm in their voices, except for his own. He wanted to leave the bed and try to find out what was going on, even though he knew the chances of him being able to stand up was next to zero, and with a grunt he worked on pushing himself into a sitting position. At least that would be a better position to get to his feet from.

By the time he had managed to push and squirm his way to half sitting, half lying against the pillows he was sweaty and breathing hard, his leg was pulsing like never before, his head was swimming, and he was completely out of strength. No matter whether he wanted to or not he would have to take a break and rest before he could work on getting out of the bed again. The feeling of weakness and shame wasn't unfamiliar, but it still made him grit his teeth and curse everything that had brought him to his current position, himself included. Himself especially. Many times had he sworn to himself that he'd listen to and obey his uncle if he managed to come home again—even though he knew it would only be a matter of time before he decided to break his oath—and it felt like a good opportunity to do so again.

The already quick beating of his heart turned rapid as he finally recovered enough to register the sounds coming from outside the room—he wasn't used to human fighting, but it was clear fights were going on. There was shouting and screaming, bodies or other heavy things hitting the water, blades screeching as another blocked it, and loud, sudden booms that made his heart skip and his ears hurt. Whatever was going on out there was something he didn't want to be a part of, whatever happened. Screw going to the door and finding out what was going on, if he had any hope of surviving he would have to flee through the windows. Unlike the humans he would welcome the ocean's embrace, knowing it would not harm him.

He carefully did not think about whether or not he had enough strength and energy to shift back to his real form.

There wasn't any time to gather more strength, however, as the door slammed open and a pair of men rushed into room, weapons raised. Mercutio froze, the heart hammering in his chest growing heavy with despair. How could the creator be so spiteful, giving him the idea a way to freedom only to snatch it away as quickly. She had never been cruel to him before, and he wondered what he had done to gain Her ire. Maybe when he died he would get to meet Her and ask.

"What the-" one of the men said, then swore darkly as he took in the sight of Mercutio.

"I don't think he's with them," the other said uncertainly. "I'll tell the captain once the fighting's done, you stay and keep watch, make sure he doesn't do anything. I wouldn't bet on it, but you never know."

The first man opened his mouth—to protest by the looks of him—but the other man had already turned his back and disappeared out through the door. Neither Mercutio nor the man said anything after that, the man keeping his focus on the doorway while only glancing at Mercutio then and again while Mercutio tried to subtly sit up straighter and look like he kept sitting in the bed out of his own free will only. While he didn't take his eyes off of the man, no matter how much his head ached or his vision kept blurring around the edges, he did his best to keep an expression of uninterested boredom. The pitying look he caught on the man's face made him both seethe and realize his facade had likely failed.

It was taking all he had in him to not collapse and let the darkness take care of him, but focusing on the way his leg screamed at him helped more than he liked. His breathing was heavy and his vision kept darkening in beat with the pounding of his head, but he gritted his teeth and pulled from a reserve he hadn't known existed, and he stayed upright. Outside the noises were quickly dying out, and idly Mercutio hoped the men on his ship—his prison—were being killed off. If he could only see the accursed captain's corpse and spit on it he would die satisfied. Maybe if he looked pathetic enough his new captors would grant him that last wish, at least.

He hadn't realized his eyelids were drooping, but when someone stepped into the room with harsh steps his focus returned with a snap. The new man was clearly the mentioned captain, his posture strong and assured, his very presence demanding attention. The scowl on his face wasn't a good sign, and Mercutio found it hard to keep his composure when the man's scowl deepened as they locked eyes.

"Explain the situation to me," he demanded, and Mercutio felt his body stiffen at the familiar tone of anger, even if it was from a person he had never met. "What is the meaning of this?"

"I cannot say, captain. I kept watch as I was told, didn't try to talk to him," the man, dubbed the Watcher in Mercutio's mind, said.

The relief at apparently not being spoken to was short-lived, because the captain's look darkened and he stepped towards Mercutio, practically oozing anger. Even if he had known about the paling of his face Mercutio wouldn't have been able to stop it, as all his focus was directed towards recoiling as much as he could from the invading presence, inching backwards towards the wall as much as he could, not even feeling any of his aches and pains. The new captain was an unknown figure, but he was angry, and Mercutio could only react reflexively at the threat of an angry man, his mind blanking out at the sudden terror.

"Tybalt! What the hell do you think you're doing!"

The man stopped moving and turned around, but it took several more seconds before Mercutio registered it and was able to breathe again. The captain—Tybalt—was talking with a woman with the same black hair and sharp nose and cheekbones, and she looked thunderous as he said something Mercutio missed.

Her voice was harder to miss, but strangely the anger in it didn't cause Mercutio to freeze up. "You really think now is a good idea to find out what put him in this situation? Naked, tied up, beaten, and that wound doesn't look good, I have to get a look at it as soon as- Look at him, just look! He's clearly terrified, even you should be able to see that with your thick skull!"

He would have expected Tybalt to fly into a rage, was tensing in preparation of it, but the man only looked at him, and then his expression twisted and he turned away again. The woman huffed and pushed past him, taking quick steps towards Mercutio. She must have noticed his tensing, because her face softened and she held out her hands with a tentative, and so sad and still angry, smile.

"I'm not going to harm you, I promise. My name is Rosaline, and I am a doctor. I only want to look at your wounds and help you if I can, okay? Is it okay if I remove this?" she said and motioned towards the rope binding Mercutio's hand.

Numbly he nodded, his mind straining to understand what was going on. He was going to get killed, wasn't he? They were all humans, he could see that they were, so why was one of them talking about helping him? Was it a ploy or some kind? Did they know what he was and wanted to sell himself themselves?

Rosaline nodded back to him and while Mercutio tried to catch up the changes from the expected scenario she undid the knot with gentle fingers and removed the rope just as carefully. Her face hardened when she got a look at his uncovered wrists, but she just silently threw the rope behind her and softly took one of his hands in hers to look closer on the marks left behind. His wince didn't go unnoticed, and she let go of him with pursed lips. When he looked at her she gave him a tight-lipped apologetic smile, however.

"I'm sorry. Can you move your hands, stretch out your fingers for me? Good, that's good. I would like to look at your wrists later, but I will leave them be for now. Would you mind telling me your name?"

Mercutio blinked, again finding himself so confused. His head was beating again, and the darkness at the edges of his vision wouldn't go away no matter how much he blinked, and now his wrists was pulsing as well, taking even more of his scattered attention. He just wanted to close his eyes and leave everything behind, let whatever happened happen. Just for now he didn't care if the woman was kind to him because she wanted him in shape to sell, what mattered was that she was kind to him and talked with him instead of at him, treating him as a person. She made him want to relax so badly.

"Mercutio," he mumbled as he fought to keep his eyes open.

"Mercutio," she echoed and he nodded, finding himself slipping to the side. He would have fallen if she hadn't caught him and helped him lie down, and when he managed to force his eyes open he saw her concerned face. "You're burning up," she muttered. Louder, she said, "I think he has a fever. Possibly the wound is infected, if it's as bad as I think it is. The skin around the bandage shouldn't have that color... Mercutio," she said and managed to catch his drifting attention. "Can I look at the wound on your leg?"

Mercutio closed his eyes with a sigh, humming softly. Rosaline must have taken it as the permission it was, because he soon felt the bandage wrapped around his leg shift and disappear. The sharp gasp was curious, but it wasn't until he heard a low growl that he was interested enough to force open his eyes again.

Tybalt was standing behind Rosaline, looking down at Mercutio's leg, and the fury on his face sent a jolt of fear through Mercutio's body. Rosaline stiffened and turned her head, but Tybalt had already taken several steps away, a pained expression on his face as he stared at the floor. Mercutio breathed hard and waited for Tybalt to look up again, but when he did he wore a guilty expression that took Mercutio aback. Their eyes locked for a moment, then Tybalt's mouth twitched and he turned to his men—the man who had left earlier to tell Tybalt had come back sometime when Mercutio wasn't paying attention—talking with them in a low voice. Mercutio closed his eyes again and tried to relax, listening to Rosaline mutter.

"This is just as I thought. Infection, and it's been allowed to fester for days! Are there no surgeons or even a barber on this godforsaken ship? Or did they just not care? Ugh!" Mercutio winced at the volume of her voice, and she cleared her throat. She sounded embarrassed enough to make Mercutio want to smile when she spoke next. "Sorry, I just- this is a work of incompetence, and that always gets me. If someone is doing a job, they should do it properly! Someone has stitched up your wound and bandaged it, so clearly there is someone here with some knowledge, and that person shouldn't have let become infected! That's just incompetence!"

"He simply didn't care," Mercutio mumbled with a small smile, feeling himself slowly drifting away into sleep. "I'm not human, just a creature, so I don't think he cared more than to keep me alive. He plans to sell me one day, after all. He told me so, and it doesn't matter to him if I get a scar or lose my toes, he said. It won't matter after. I'll be okay, I still got my tongue. It's important, see, as long as I can talk I can make it. Will you let me talk? If you're going to hold me captive now, will you take my tongue? I think he wanted to do it many times, but he only strangled me instead when I talked too much." Letting out a sigh Mercutio felt himself sinking into the blessed darkness.

"Wait, what? Mercutio? Mercutio, don't fall asleep, please. Listen to me. What are you talking about? Who hurt you?"

The voice was insistent and it kept him from truly falling into the peaceful quiet, and he tried to figure out what the voice wanted. He felt himself being shaken, and slowly he opened his eyes, blinking to try and clear them. Above him was a woman—ah, yes, Rosaline, right, he remembered—and he frowned as he recalled what she had asked. "Ramera," he said, the very name filling him with memories, and with them nausea.

"And who is that, Mercutio? Is it the captain of this ship?"

It wasn't Rosaline who had asked, and Mercutio looked up at Tybalt again. He tried not to look angry now, Mercutio saw, and the view reminded him of his uncle's face whenever Mercutio had done something bad but Giovanni couldn't let his anger show yet. It was such a fond memory—it had happened often enough to be classed as such—that Mercutio felt the corners of his lips twist.

"Yes. I hoped you would have killed him," Mercutio revealed. He felt so far beyond caring about anything, so he continued on, "If you're going to hold me captive now, can I see his corpse before you tie me up somewhere again? I really, really want to do that."

Tybalt's face twisted and he muttered lowly, as though to himself, "If the man isn't dead I will kill him. No," he then said, louder and looking at Mercutio again, "We won't hold you captive, I swear to you. We don't deal in slavery, and I abhor the practice."

"Oh," was all that ran through Mercutio's mind. "Can I sleep then?"

"Just a little while longer, okay? We will need to get you on board of our ship first." Rosaline stood up and looked at the two crew members still standing in the room. "We need someone to carry him, I doubt he will be able to walk."

"I'll do it," the Watcher quickly said and walked forward. "I've kept watch over him so far, feels only right."

The thought of protesting being lifted occurred someplace in the back of Mercutio's mind, but it was easily squashed. The idea of trying to walk on his own was much worse, and it would be nice to be carried. Maybe he could rest then.

Actually being lifted and carried by someone wasn't as pleasant as he had hoped, however, as the sailor couldn't avoid pressing on his numerous bruises. With the scant amount of strength left in him Mercutio could only whimper and shudder, but his reaction was enough to give Rosaline a bitter and regretful expression. She said to hurry and swept out of the room, closely followed by the Watcher, who was trying to be as gentle as he could while also walking as fast as possible.

The breath of fresh ocean air gave Mercutio a small shock, being bereft of it for what felt like an eternity, but it also calmed him like nothing else had managed. Closing his eyes he breathed in, and with the smell of clean air in his nose and the sound of water in his ears he fell, into blessed, blessed darkness.

Right before he severed his tie with his consciousness he could hear angry shouting, but it seemed so far away, and so insignificant. He felt cared for and, for a moment, free. There was nothing that mattered now.


	4. Wash Away

_He was swimming down in the deep waters, stretching out his tail and going as fast as he could. It would have been nice to have Benvolio and Romeo with him, but he knew neither of them were close to keeping up with his speed, and he was in a mood to let go entirely. So they had had to be left behind this time, and as he dashed past a small family of whales he admitted to himself that he enjoyed the silence. Even one who loved being around others as much as Mercutio needed some time to himself._

_Spotting another couple of whales, surely part of the family shortly behind him, Mercutio slowed down and swam up to the smaller one with a smile. They circled each other for a bit, the bigger creature eyeing him with curiosity, and when Mercutio invited her to play she happily joined him. The game they begun was a game of tag, where they both swam around her great father who allowed them with calm amusement. Mercutio had never been good at whale singing, but his new friend didn't mind his mistakes, and the playful melody they created lasted for hours._

 

\-----

 

"Mercutio? Mercutio, wake up. I know you can't eat much, but you need something nutritional in you. I had the cook make some broth soup. Here, eat as much as you can okay? Take as long as you need, there's no need to hurry. As soon as you have eaten I will check your wound, and after that you can go back to sleep, okay? Good, that's good."

 

\-----

 

_Mercutio was still small, and however he tried he couldn't keep up with his parents' speed. It wasn't that they kept leaving him behind on purpose, he knew that, but it still made him want to scream in anger when he saw his dad chase his laughing mom, with him falling behind. Crossing his arms he made his decision and stopped, turning around a few times before he sank down on a stone and hugged his tail close._

_They were stupid and silly and disgusting anyway, with all the time they flirted and held hands and—he shuddered at the thought—kissed. He didn't want to spend any time around them anyway, not when they were being all stupid like they were. Others were always saying how nice it was that they were so clearly still in love, but Mercutio hated it! It was yucky, that's what it was._

_A shadow fell over him and he looked up into his uncle's face. Hugging his tail even closer Mercutio sulked and poked at the stone he was sitting on. Without waiting for an invitation Giovanni settled next to him, stretching out his long tail. One day he'd have a tail like that, Mercutio thought wistfully._

_"Left behind again, huh, kiddo?"_

_"Wasn't left behind," Mercutio muttered. "Didn't want to be with them anyway. They're yucky."_

_"Oh, so that's what you think?" When Mercutio raised his eyes Giovanni winked at him. "Still in love, after ten years and one child—and another on the way! Amazing, that is."_

_"Yucky."_

_Giovanni chuckled and pulled at a strand of Mercutio's hair. "Very yucky. Should we complain to your grandmother about them?"_

_Mercutio made a face. "No! She always asks all these questions when I go see her, on and on and on and on **forever**." He rolled around and mimicked his grandmother's voice, "What have you been up to today, Cutio? How does your studies go, Cutio? Have you found a cute girl yet, Cutio? Mercutio, what in the world is this I'm hearing about a giant squid being released in the Eastern part of the city?"_

_Giovanni laughed at that and grabbed Mercutio, ruffling his hair for real. "Yes, well, if you don't want to be yelled at by her I suggest you learn to hide your involvement in those pranks of yours. If you don't the people will simply continue to complain to her, and she'll have to continue to lecture you."_

_"It wasn't that bad," Mercutio muttered and lied down on Giovanni's chest. "There wasn't that much damage done."_

_"So you say." Giovanni shook his head and rose up, smiling down at Mercutio. "I think we should go find your parents and see if we can find an opportunity to pelt them with seashells. What do you say?"_

_Mercutio hummed and swam around to latch himself to Giovanni's back. "Spray them with squid ink!"_

_"You and your squids," Giovanni said and shook his head, but he smiled and waited until Mercutio's arms was secured around his neck, then nodded. "If you see any along the way, then we'll see. Otherwise it's seashells. Okay?"_

_"Okay," Mercutio granted graciously. "Now, onward!"_

 

\-----

 

"—lling you, I can't get- oh, he's awake. Mercutio, can you hear me? Look at me, look here. Good, good. Your fever is getting worse, but me and my apprentice here, Paolo, we're doing the best we can to help you. Here, see if you can drink some water. Good, that's- oh! Paolo, bucket, quick! There, it's okay, it's okay. Take deep breaths. It's okay. I got you."

 

\-----

 

_Slowly moving forward Mercutio looked around. Slightly behind him to his left Benvolio looked anxious, while Romeo's tail moved restlessly. Mercutio nodded and waved okay for the others to move._

_"I know I agreed that this was a great plan and all," Benvolio whispered, "but I am starting to wonder if I wasn't mistaken."_

_"Oh, come on." Mercutio looked over at Romeo who gave him a shrug. "Don't worry about it. If we keep to the plan it'll all go well and no one will find out we were here. Even if they suspect us they'll have nothing to prove it."_

_"Exactly. We agreed to do it, so we all need to be completely in on this." Romeo stared at Benvolio. "Are you prepared for this, Ben?"_

_Benvolio groaned and pushed past them both with a sour look, quickly swimming across the hallway and opening the door. Mercutio and Romeo quickly followed him, and Mercutio closed the door behind them while Benvolio and Romeo gaped at the room they found themselves in._

_"So many treasures," Romeo breathed out in awe._

_Mercutio smirked proudly and nudged Benvolio's shoulder. "My family has always had good taste, didn't I say so?"_

_"Guess you're the exception then," Benvolio said absentmindedly, barely wincing when Mercutio punched his shoulder._

_"You must be nice to me, or I won't show you the real priceless things." Mercutio grinned as he suddenly became the center of attention. "I did tell you, didn't I? This—everything you see here?—is basically just trash in comparison with the other things. That's why there's no traps here."_

_"Wait, traps? You only talked about the guards." Romeo and Benvolio shared a glance, but Mercutio waved it away._

_"I told you, it'll be fine. I've been to those rooms before, I know the traps and hidden alarms and everything. Just follow my lead and there won't be a problem."_

_Despite sharing another dubious look Benvolio and Romeo followed their friend to one of the archways, which they found led to another corridor. Mercutio led them through archways and corridors until they had lost all direction, until he finally stopped in front of a closed door. Without hesitation Mercutio pushed it open and swam into the room._

_"Whoa... what is all this?" Romeo swam closer to a pedestal on top of which a softly shimmering mask rested. "It looks really old."_

_"Don't touch!" Nodding as he saw Romeo quickly pull back his fingers Mercutio swam further into the room. "Don't touch anything, not until we've made sure there's no trap or alarm connected to whatever it is. Also, don't touch any surface."_

_"You mean there are traps everywhere? In the walls?" Benvolio looked around like he thought something would jump out at him at any moment._

_"Do I look like an architect? I have no clue." Mercutio shrugged. "It would be strange if there were traps everywhere, but like I said, better to not touch anything until we know for sure, right?"_

_"Of course." Benvolio looked wearily at Mercutio, but then rolled his eyes and swam closer to a dark statue of what looked like a human. "So, what is all this?"_

_"Treasures. Ancient and priceless, apparently. That statue you're looking at is almost a thousand years old, my mother told me, and was gifted to my great-great-great grandfather by a delegation from Atlantis. You know, back when they tried go get their tentacles in the politics of every single kingdom."_

_"I heard that their current King spends more time with his seahorses than with his wife," Romeo said idly, drifting around the room and looking at the shelves he passed._

_"I heard that you listen to too many rumors," Benvolio said and rolled his eyes. "Who cares about Atlantis, it's been ages since anyone cared about them. Now, where's that thing you were so interested in, Cutio? I don't want to remain here too long; a guard might come looking at any moment, you know."_

_Mercutio didn't look at him, too busy searching the shelves. "It'll be okay, I told you already. They don't come into this room, so we'll just have to be careful when we get out ag- aha! Here it is!"_

_Both Benvolio and Romeo swam over to him, curiously looking at the object they had come to steal._

_"Isn't that just a simple crystal?" Romeo asked with raised eyebrows. "It's not even shining properly, like one of those really expensive ones. What do you want this one for?"_

_"Of course it's not shining." Mercutio rolled his eyes. "Those other ones only do that because they have no other worth than how prettily they look, but this one- oh, this one is truly priceless. It's a conduit, see? A medium. It's what the rulers here have always used to control the magic of the ocean, for hundreds of years."_

_"And you're... going to steal it?" Mercutio didn't notice how Benvolio and Romeo shared a look, or how Benvolio crossed his arms uneasily. "Don't you think that's a, you know, bad idea?"_

_"Nonsense, it's rarely used. Not much need for magic these days, after all. I think uncle used it once, many years ago, but that's it. He won't notice if it's gone a little while, and by the time anyone would notice it's gone we'll have put it back. Don't worry. Just think of all the amazing things we can do!" Mercutio leaned forward and waved at his friends. "Now shush, I'm trying to see if there's any traps here. That's not... okay, and there's... good... ah, there's one. But come on, it's so easy. A child could disarm this one. Okay, just a sec- there we go. Mm, should be all, can't see anything else. Okay, let's do it."_

_The moment Mercutio had the crystal in his hand a loud shrieking noise rang through the room, and the door slammed shut. Immediately Benvolio threw himself at the door-handle, but he couldn't get it to budge._

_"Oops," was all Mercutio said when twin glares were directed his way._

 

\-----

 

"You're not listening to me. Tybalt, we need to get to the shore as quickly as possible! Any town or sea port is good, I just need somewhere dry and tools I can actually use—I can't do surgery on a ship! He barely wakes up now, and during the short times when he does he doesn't recognize me or where he is, and whatever food or water I manage to get in him is thrown up. His fever is sky high and I can't get rid of the infection in his leg. I don't know how many more days he'll last. If we don't do something, and soon, he'll die."

"I understand. I'll tell the men to change route; there's a town two days' journey from here where we can make land."

"Thank you. I just... I hope it's not too late."

 

\-----

 

_The moment Mercutio was through the entrance he had a small maroon figure hanging around his neck. It took a second, but then Mercutio hugged his brother just as tight, and slowly drifted across the room to where their uncle stood, bags under his eyes and lips pressed tight._

_"He was getting worried," was all Giovanni said, but the displeasure rang with each word._

_Mercutio gritted his teeth and continued past him out into the hallway and towards his own room—Valentine had slept with him for the past three weeks, every night since- since **it** happened. "I'm sorry, okay, Val? I was helping Ben and Romeo with something, and it took longer than I had expected."_

_"I thought you weren't coming home," a small voice said from the face pressed against Mercutio's neck. Mercutio hugged him tighter, cursing himself for being thoughtless._

_"I know, I know. But I'm here now, okay? I might disappear for a little while, but I'll never leave you behind. You know that, right? You're my precious brother and I'll always keep you safe." Putting Valentine down on the bed Mercutio smirked and pinched his cheeks. "And when you're an old man you're going to complain, 'Oh, why can he never leave me alone? I just want one minute on my own,' and I'm going to be there right and I'm going to pinch your cheeks just like this, and I'm going to kiss your forehead like this—mwah!—and you're going to be so embarrassed and wish I went away."_

_Valentine giggled and tried to stop Mercutio from pinching his cheeks again. "Stop it! You're silly, stop it!"_

_"Me? I am **never** silly, I meant every word. You take it back!" Pretending to be affronted Mercutio tickled Valentine's sides, and when the child tried to get away he simply pulled him back by the tail—Valentine was still far too small to have a chance of being faster than Mercutio—and continued to tickle him. Finally Valentine begged for mercy, and Mercutio granted it to him with one last pinch of his cheeks._

_"Do you really promise to never go away?" Valentine asked with softly as Mercutio lied down next to him on the bed._

_"I promise," Mercutio answered and stroked Valentine's hair as he burrowed into Mercutio's arms. Humming a song their mother had used to sing for them Mercutio waited until soft snores was heard. It only took a minute, and while Mercutio gently removed himself he wondered how scared Valentine had been to stay awake until Mercutio came home. He was only seven years old, after all. He couldn't stay awake as long as adults could._

_"That's not a promise you should make," said a voice from the archway to his room, and Mercutio looked over to see Giovanni cross his arms. "It's one of those promises no one can keep, especially not you, who insist on recklessness every single day."_

_"I always know what I get myself into," Mercutio hissed between gritted teeth and swam over to his uncle so as to not disturb Valentine. "There's never any true danger. I'll always return to take care of him, since I'm the only family he has left. The only one who actually _cares_ about him."_

_Giovanni's mouth twisted, but instead of shouting he took a deep breath. "If that's the case then you shouldn't let him worry again like he did today. He was panicking, and no one could calm him down. He was sure you were dead."_

_Mercutio took a breath and opened his mouth, but closed it again with a snap. If he shouted Valentine would wake up, and he was already upset enough. And Giovanni was right; that had been his fault. "It won't happen again," he said and stared back at his little brother._

_"Again, that's not a promise you can keep."_

_Instead of turning around and telling his uncle exactly what he thought about his damn comments Mercutio kept silent, and soon he felt the water move in a way that told him Giovanni had left. Good. Mercutio didn't want anything to do with him, anyway. Giovanni could go back to his **duties** and **responsibilities** and let Mercutio care for Valentine in peace. They didn't need him. As long as they had each other they didn't need anyone else._

 

\-----

 

"Mercutio, please hang on. You're doing so well, it's just a little bit more. We're going to get you through this, I know it. Just hold on a little more; it'll soon be over. I got you, I got you. I'm here, Mercutio, I got you and I'm not letting go. Stay with me. Stay."

 

\-----

 

_He was swimming, the ocean stretching out all around him, further than he could see. From where he was he couldn't see the ocean bottom or where the water met air, but it didn't matter to him. Everything was calm around him. Peaceful._

_Next to him were Benvolio and Romeo, talking to each other and joking. Mercutio tried to join in, but the words they spoke didn't make sense to him, and he couldn't slow down. He was faster than them, always had been, and soon they were falling behind, disappearing in the darkness behind him._

_Mercutio swam on._

_His uncle swam up to his side, smiling and carefree like he hadn't been in years, and behind his shoulder Mercutio saw his parents swim, hand in hand. He tried to change directions, wanting so badly to hug them all, but he only had one course. They smiled at him, and then they turned to each other and disappeared. When next Mercutio looked at Giovanni, seeking reassurance, he only found a cold face looking back at him, filled with disappointment. Shaking his head Giovanni stopped swimming, and no matter how hard he tried Mercutio couldn't reach him._

_Mercutio swam on._

_A figure circled him, and he smiled when Valentine came up alongside him. Together they swam side by side in silence, and Mercutio quickly lost track of how long. His brother's hand nudged his every now and then, and Mercutio closed his eyes and simply enjoyed it. The simplicity. The peace. There was no need to reach for Valentine, because he was right there._

_But when he opened his eyes again he was alone, heading towards a darkness even his sharp eyes couldn't pierce. He couldn't stop, and he couldn't change change direction. So he swam on._

 

\-----

 

When he opened his eyes there was a woman, with black hair and a sharp nose but with kind, worried eyes, standing above him. The moment their eyes met she smiled and the tension in her face eased a little. She seemed to know him, or at least care about him.

"I'm so happy you woke up. You've been unconscious for several days, and even though the infection is gone and your wounds are all healing I couldn't be sure. Some patients that has been through such trauma as you have don't make it, even if the surgery goes well. But you've been hanging on the whole time, so I had strong hope you would return to us."

He frowned and opened his mouth, but only a weak croak could be heard. The woman immediately turned to the small table next to the bed he was on and took a cup, bringing it to his lips as she helped raise his head.

"Easy, I know you want to drink, but you have all the time in the world. You can't drink too much at a time. That's it, nice and slow. Coughing would be painful, so we don't want any of that."

He listened to her as he drank, slowly and carefully as she said, even though he desperately wanted more. When he finally felt he couldn't stand any more he closed his mouth and shook his head, and she immediately put it back where she had taken it. As she sat down on a chair he looked around at his surroundings quickly, but nothing gave him a clue of where he was.

"Where am I?" he whispered with a hoarse voice that sounded strange to his ears. But that wasn't the right question, he realized with a frown, and tried again, "Who am I?"

The woman blinked at him, but then realization dawned in her eyes and tears filled her eyes as she pressed a hand over her mouth. He didn't know why, but something in him told him that he should probably be reacting harder than she did. If only he could remember why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is as long as I have gotten on this fic. If you like this and want more don't hesitate to comment or drop by my tumblr (tveckling . tumblr . com) to talk to me. I am always, always happy to talk, especially about my fics. I hope that chapters for this fic won't take as long as for Strange Bedfellows.


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